Verizon posts higher 3rd-quarter net income, higher revenue

Verizon Communications Inc. on Tuesday reported lower net income but higher revenue in its third quarter, helped by strong wireless subscriber growth and demand for its FiOS Internet services.

The New York-based company earned $3.69 billion, or 89 cents per share, up from $2.23 billion, or 78 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier, when the company had fewer outstanding shares.

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The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 92 cents per share.

The largest U.S. cellphone carrier posted revenue of $31.59 billion, up 4 percent from $30.28 billion a year earlier.

Analysts expected higher revenue of $31.71 billion, according to Zacks.

Verizon, which bought out its wireless division from British cellphone carrier Vodafone Group earlier this year, said it added 1.5 million net retail wireless connections in the quarter. It ended September with 106.2 million wireless connections, including 100.1 million that involved monthly service contracts.

Verizon's shares fell 48 cents to $48 in premarket trading. As of Monday's close, the shares had declined slightly more than 1 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed 3 percent. The stock has fallen 3 percent in the last 12 months.